Bridge, over the train network: "It's not a teapot. It won't be fixed in two days."

MadridTime. This is the factor that will now determine the restoration of normal rail service in Spain, and particularly in Catalonia, where the commuter rail network has been mired in chaos for days. This was reiterated by the Minister of Transport and Sustainable Mobility, Óscar Puente, during his appearance before Congress this Tuesday: "The rail network isn't a teapot. It can't be fixed in two days," stated Puente, who, five days after appearing before the Senate regarding the Adamúz (Córdoba) train accident—also a fatal accident in Gelida—repeated the procedure in the lower house of the Spanish Parliament. Puente appeared again at his own request and that of the parliamentary groups—this Tuesday, the Catalan Republican Left (ERC) submitted a list of requests for his appearance regarding the rail chaos—and immediately took the opportunity to defend his decision to address the situation during this rail crisis. He also apologized to commuter rail users. The Transport Minister has been under intense scrutiny for days, especially from the right wing and the Catalan independence movement, who have called for his resignation. But he is also being targeted by railway unions, particularly train drivers, and will meet with them this Wednesday to discuss their demands.

The appearance coincided with Another morning of failures on the Catalan networkBut it has also coincided with a political announcement regarding the management of the service in Catalonia: the Secretary of State for Transport and Puente's second-in-command, José Antonio Santano has announced that he is moving to Barcelona. to personally oversee the response to the Principality's railway problems. "This is a death foretold," Junts deputy Isidre Gavín told Puente. Puente emphasized that since the problems began, an operation involving more than 300 people has been deployed to resolve the numerous incidents. The Minister of Transport outlined an equation that, he said, "is not easy to solve": "We want construction, maintenance, and renovation, but also the provision of rail service. [...] There isn't a single commuter rail line that doesn't have one or two projects underway or pending," the minister pointed out, adding that current weather phenomena, such as heavy rains, are also a factor. In this context, Puente affirmed that passenger safety is paramount. In fact, he reiterated that the railway system in Spain is "very safe," with a risk "close to zero."

In any case, Puente has not denied the chronic neglect of the Catalan rail network—the minister blames the PP governments—although he assures that the Spanish government is reversing this—he himself has estimated an additional 2.24 billion euros in investment in commuter rail services until 2030 to reinforce maintenance efforts. However, Junts and ERC have criticized him for "making excuses" with what the PP did in the past. "We are tired," ERC deputy Inés Granollers told him. Gavín demanded that he abandon his "delusions of grandeur" of wanting to launch the second highest-speed rail network in the world while neglecting investments in commuter and freight services. The Junts deputy asked that the project to create high-speed routes at 350 kilometers per hour be shelved.

Uncertain reopening in Andalusia

Regarding the tragic train accident in Córdoba that resulted in the deaths of 46 people and injuries to many others, Puente indicated that the investigation is ongoing and that the next steps involve sending samples of the damaged rail to a metallurgical laboratory to determine the possible causes of the infrastructure failure. "No hypothesis is being ruled out," Puente stated. As for the affected Andalusian line, the minister declined to commit to a reopening timeline due to the extent of the infrastructure damage. In addition to the problems stemming from the tragedy three weeks ago, an incident occurred on Tuesday on the conventional line between Seville and Córdoba due to a cable theft that affected the signaling system, which was resolved a few hours later.